Walsall bungalow plan could help protect green belt
Building six chalet bungalows on disused Bloxwich farm land could help protect other greenbelt land, planners have been told.
Members of Walsall Council’s planning committee are being advised to reject the proposal to demolish an unused cottage and former stables at Pear Tree Farm, in Fishley Lane, to replace them with the four bedroom properties.
Officers said the proposal would be inappropriate for the greenbelt, in an unsustainable location with narrow unsafe access for pedestrians, cyclists or refuse collection.
But the application was ‘called in’ by Walsall Council deputy leader Adrian Andrew on the grounds it was in the public interest and it would be a “re-use of a previously developed site to protect other untouched greenbelt land which is under threat.”
It will now be discussed and decided at a committee meeting on Thursday, November 4.
Planning agent Design Construction Management Services Ltd said the land is classed as a brownfield site and added Walsall Council had confirmed it was no longer an agricultural unit back in 2016.
They said: “The proposals will function well and add to the overall quality of the area, not just for the short term but over the lifetime of the development.
“They are visually attractive as a result of good architecture, layout and appropriate and effective landscaping and are sympathetic to local character and history, including the surrounding built environment and landscape setting.
“[The plan] establishes a strong sense of place, using the arrangement of building types and materials to create attractive, welcoming and a distinctive place to live.
“It creates a place that is safe, inclusive and accessible and which promote health and well-being, with a high standard of amenity for existing and future users; and where crime and disorder, and the fear of crime, do not undermine the quality of life or community cohesion and resilience.”
